JP6877118B2 - Viscous material coating device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a viscous material coating device having a function of removing excess viscous material or the like adhering to the outer peripheral surface of the nozzle tip when, for example, applying a viscous material such as an adhesive to a printed circuit board.

In a coating device that ejects a highly viscous liquid coating material (hereinafter referred to as "viscous material") such as an adhesive onto the surface of the coating object from a coating nozzle, the viscous material is discharged onto the surface of the coating object. It is known that the viscous material adhering to the outer peripheral surface of the nozzle tip affects the coating quality in the coating process, and in order to remove this unnecessary viscous material, a new cleaning process is provided to the nozzle tip. It was necessary to clean the deposits regularly or irregularly to finish a stable coating shape.
As a conventional example, there is one equipped with a cleaning function according to the characteristics of the viscous material used. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a method of burying a coating nozzle in a brush portion and moving it up, down, left and right to remove stains, a method of contacting a sponge impregnated with a volatile solvent with the coating nozzle to remove it, and a method of removing the stain. , A method of removing by ultrasonic cleaning, etc. are described.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 6-252541 (Page 1, FIGS. 1 and 2)

In the conventional technique as described above, the method of burying the nozzle part in the brush part and moving it up, down, left and right has a problem of complicated operation and reattachment, and in the method using a volatile solvent, a viscous material is used. In addition to the fact that it may not melt, there were issues such as increased environmental measures.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is possible to reliably remove excess viscous material and other deposits adhering to the outer surface of the tip of the coating nozzle, and a configuration of a cleaning device. Also aims to provide a simple viscous material coating device.

The coating apparatus according to the present invention includes a coating nozzle provided for coating a viscous material at a predetermined position of an object to be coated, a nozzle moving means capable of moving the coating nozzle to an arbitrary position, and the coating device. In a viscous material coating device provided with a cleaning device for removing deposits on the outer surface of the tip of the nozzle, the cleaning devices are arranged so as to sandwich the tip of the coating nozzle from both sides so as to be able to advance and retreat from each other. When the tip of the coating nozzle is sandwiched, each of the sandwiched portions is deformed so as to imitate the outer peripheral surface of the tip, and a pair of deposits having elasticity capable of surrounding the half circumference of the tip. A pair of removing members and a removing member moving device capable of advancing and retreating the pair of deposit removing members with respect to the coating nozzle in at least the opposite direction, and sandwiching the tip of the coating nozzle. The side view cross-sectional shape from the direction orthogonal to the facing surfaces of the deposit removing members is such that the deposits are removed by moving the coating nozzle relative to the deposit removing member in the pulling direction. receding the end of the side facing the root portion side of the coating nozzle to form a convex portion that protrudes in the mating direction, a side facing the front end of the coating nozzle continuous with the convex portion is inclined in the backward direction It is characterized in that a surface is formed so that when the tip portion of the coating nozzle is sandwiched, the convex portion surrounds a half circumference of the tip portion.

In the present invention, when the tip portion of the coating nozzle is sandwiched from both sides thereof, the facing surface portion is pressed against the nozzle tip portion and deformed so as to imitate the outer peripheral surface of the nozzle tip portion, and surrounds the half circumference of each of the tip portions. Adhesion is removed by using a deposit removing member having possible elasticity and moving the coating nozzle relative to the pair of the deposit removing members sandwiching the tip of the coating nozzle in the pulling direction. Therefore, the deposits on the outer surface of the tip of the coating nozzle can be reliably removed, and the configuration can be simplified.

It is a perspective view which conceptually shows the main part of the viscous material coating apparatus which concerns on Embodiments 1 to 3 of this invention. It is a side view which shows the main part structure of the cleaning apparatus shown in FIG. 1 in detail. It is a top view explaining the operation of the deposit removing member of the cleaning apparatus shown in FIG. It is a side sectional view explaining the operation of the cleaning apparatus shown in FIG. It is a perspective view explaining the operation of the main part of the viscous material coating apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the control flow which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention.

Embodiment 1.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view conceptually showing a main part of the viscous material coating device according to the first to third embodiments of the present invention, and shows the appearance of the coating device. In the figure, the viscous material coating device has a fixed table 2 on which the coating target portion of the coating target 1 such as a printed substrate is placed on the upper surface, and a high viscosity adhesive such as an adhesive filled in the nozzle 3. A coating nozzle 4 for precisely applying a preset predetermined amount of the viscous material in small amounts by discharging the viscous material (not shown) from above the object to be coated 1 by an air type dispenser (not shown), and for coating. A monitoring camera 5 that monitors the tip 4a of the nozzle 4, a position recognition camera 6 that recognizes the coating position on the coating object 1, the above-mentioned syringe 3, the coating nozzle 4, the monitoring camera 5, and the position recognition camera 6 Is installed on the X-axis drive mechanism 7X having a gantry structure, the Y-axis drive mechanism 7Y installed on the gantry, and the Y-axis drive mechanism 7Y. It is provided with a nozzle moving means 7 including a Z-axis drive mechanism 7Z, and a cleaning device 8 for removing viscous material and foreign matter adhering to the outer surface of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4.

The cleaning device 8 is installed within the movable range of the coating nozzle 4 by the nozzle moving means 7 on the side portion of the coating object 1 on the fixed table 2.
FIG. 2 is a side view showing in detail the main configuration of the cleaning device shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a top view for explaining the operation of the deposit removing member of the cleaning device shown in FIG. 2 (a). ) Indicates a state in which the facing deposit removing member 81 is open, and (b) indicates a state in which the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 is sandwiched between the deposit removing members 81. 4A and 4B are side sectional views illustrating the operation of the cleaning device shown in FIG. 2, where FIG. 4A is a view corresponding to FIG. 3A and FIG. Indicates a state in which the deposit 9 such as excess viscous material adhering to the outer surface of the tip of the coating nozzle is removed.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning device 8 is made of an elastic material that constitutes a cleaning head that is arranged so as to be able to advance and retreat from both sides of the tip portion 4a including the discharge port of the coating nozzle 4 from both sides thereof. A pair of left and right adhering material removing members 81, a gripping mechanism 82 using a lorlet type fixing screw 82a that allows the adhering material removing member 81 to be attached / detached and fixed without a tool, and the gripping mechanism 82, respectively. The Y-axis direction drive unit (not shown) that moves the pair of left and right adhering material removal members 81 forward and backward (including those that open and close by rotation) in the direction opposite to each other (Y-axis direction), and the adhering material removal With the member 81 sandwiching the tip of the coating nozzle 4 with a necessary force, the up-and-down slide for moving the deposit removing member 81 together with the gripping mechanism 82 and the Y-axis direction drive unit in the downward direction in the drawing. It is composed of a removal member moving device 84 having a vertical sliding mechanism base 83b attached via a moving arm 83a and having a Z-axis direction drive unit (not shown).
The surveillance camera 5 shown in FIG. 1 will be described in the second embodiment.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the facing surfaces of the adhering material removing members 81 arranged to face each other have a side view cross-sectional shape from the X-axis direction orthogonal to the facing surfaces when the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 is sandwiched. The upper end portion of the nozzle facing the root side (upper side in the drawing) forms a convex portion 81a protruding in the mating direction, and the nozzle is connected to the convex portion 81a in the lower direction in the drawing. The tip end side (lower side in the figure) is a receding surface 81b formed so as to be inclined or recessed in the receding direction. Then, as shown in FIG. 4B, when the tip end portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 is sandwiched between the retracting surfaces 81b facing each other, a vacant portion B is formed. ing. As shown in FIG. 4, the position of the convex portion 81a of the deposit removing member 81 with respect to the coating nozzle 4 is the position where the deposit 9 such as excess viscous material or foreign matter adheres to the outer surface of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4. It is better to arrange it so that it is closer to the root portion (upper portion in the figure) than the root portion.

Needless to say, the shapes of the convex portion 81a and the receding surface 81b are not limited to those shown in the drawing. The convex portion 81a needs to have a shape in which the thickness of the portion in contact with the tip portion 4a is suppressed so that a necessary force is applied to the portion sandwiching the coating nozzle 4, but the entire circumference of the cleaning target portion is covered. It suffices if the amount of deformation required for covering can be secured, and the pinching force generated when the facing surface of the deposit removing member 81 is closed by the removing member moving device 84 and the elastic force of the elastic material used as the deposit removing member 81. And, the desired shape can be determined within a range determined by the relationship between the outer diameter and the shape of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4. The receding surface 81b is not limited to a straight line, and may be a curved surface or a shape including both a straight line and a curved line. Further, the deposit removing member 81 shown in FIG. 2 is configured vertically symmetrically with respect to the center line A in the vertical direction, and when the function of the convex portion 81a on the upper side deteriorates, the gripping mechanism is inverted upside down. Although it is possible to extend the usable period by attaching it to the 82, it is not particularly limited to the vertically symmetrical structure.

Further, the deposit removing member 81 is a consumable item, and the gripping mechanism 82 that holds the deposit removing member 81 can be replaced. Therefore, a knurled type fixing screw 82a is used to attach and detach the deposit removing member 81. By using it, it has a shape and structure that can be easily and easily performed without the need for tools such as a screwdriver, and can be installed with high accuracy. Further, the removing member moving device 84 is a fixed table so that the positions in the advancing / retreating direction or the opening / closing direction of the mutual contact surfaces when the gaps between the facing deposit removing members 81 are closed are free within a certain range. It is held swingably with respect to 2, and is configured so that the force when sandwiching the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 acts evenly on the tip portion 4a.

Further, as for the material of the deposit removing member 81, when the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 is sandwiched, as shown in FIG. 3B, the convex portion 81a in the sandwiched portion is the outer periphery of the tip portion 4a. It is desirable that the material has rubber elasticity that can be deformed to follow the surface shape and surround the tip portion 4a so as to be in close contact with the half circumference of the tip portion 4a. It is not necessary to use a sponge or a felt material, which is porous and has breathability and water absorption. Specific examples of the material that can be preferably used as the above-mentioned deposit removing member 81 include, but are not limited to, urethane rubber and EPDM having a hardness of about Shore A32.

In the first embodiment, the coating nozzle 4 is pulled out by moving the facing deposit removing member 81 downward with respect to the coating nozzle 4 with the tip portion 4a of the nozzle sandwiched. It is moved relative to the direction to remove the deposit 9 adhering to the periphery of the tip of the coating nozzle 4, but in order to reliably clean the entire circumference of the tubular tip 4a of the coating nozzle 4. When sandwiched between the convex portions 81a of the deposit removing member 81, it is necessary to bring the tip portion 4a into close contact so as to cover the entire circumference without gaps. For that purpose, it is desirable to form the convex portions 81a of the deposit removing member 81 so that the area where the convex portions 81a are in contact with each other or the outer peripheral surface of the tip portion 4a is as small as possible at the position where the tip portion 4a is sandwiched. ..

When the contact area becomes large, the tightening force, which is the closing force of the Y-axis direction drive portion in the removing member moving device 84, is dispersed in unnecessary parts other than the contact point with the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4, which is a minute size. It is not preferable because it will be done. Here, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the side view cross-sectional shape of the convex portion 81a is formed to be a triangular acute-angled corner shape so that the contact area is reduced, so that the coating nozzle 4 is formed. The tip portion 4a can be brought into close contact with the tip portion 4a so as to cover the entire circumference without a gap. In this way, when the convex portion 81a of the deposit removing member 81 sandwiched by forming the convex portion 81a to reduce the contact area and the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 are sandwiched in contact with each other. The force is concentrated, and a necessary force is applied to the convex portion 81a of the deposit removing member 81, so that stable deformation can be obtained.

According to the above configuration, the pair of deposit removing members 81 arranged symmetrically do not apply an external force to the convex portion 81a which is the contact surface with the coating nozzle 4 when the facing surfaces are open to each other. While the shape is flat in the X-axis direction and gaps are formed at regular intervals as shown in FIG. 3A, the removal member moving device 84 sandwiches the coating nozzle 4. In the closed state, the convex portion 81a is deformed by the closing force of the removing member moving device 84 so as to follow the shape of the outer periphery of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 so as to be in close contact with the half circumference thereof. As shown, it is in close contact with the entire circumference of the nozzle tip.

The position recognition camera 6 moves the coating nozzle 4 with high accuracy with respect to the coating target position in the XY coordinates and the Z-axis (height) direction set in advance on the coating object 1. Since it is used to control the above and the conventional method can be appropriately selected and used, detailed description thereof will be omitted.
In addition to the above, a control device including a nozzle moving means 7 of the coating device, a removing member moving device 84 of the cleaning device 8 and a storage means for storing programs and setting information for controlling the operation is provided. However, the illustration is omitted in the same manner.

Next, the operation of the first embodiment configured as described above will be described. It is assumed that the pair of adhering matter removing members 81 facing each other in the cleaning device 8 are moved in the retracting direction by the removing member moving device 84 so that the facing surfaces are opened at regular intervals. The timing of cleaning the coating nozzle 4 is not particularly limited, but in the first embodiment, the coating is sequentially applied to a plurality of coating positions determined by the design specifications on the coating object 1. It shall be applied when the number of times of application reaches the set predetermined number of times.

When cleaning the coating nozzle 4, as shown in FIG. 2, the facing surfaces of the pair of deposit removing members 81 are opened from each other, and the center of the gap between the convex portions 81a when they are held in a stationary state in the raised position. At the position, the tubular tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 to be cleaned is placed on the X-axis drive mechanism 7X having a gantry structure and the Y-axis drive mechanism 7X installed on the gantry. It is moved by the mechanism 7Y, and further lowered in the Z-axis direction by the Z-axis drive mechanism 7Z installed on the Y-axis drive mechanism 7Y as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4A. As for the lowering position, the tip of the coating nozzle 4 on the discharge port side (the lower end of the figure) comes to the lower side of the drawing with respect to the positions of the opposing convex portions 81a in the vertical direction, and the upper end of the convex portion 81a is coated. It is set so as to face the root portion of the tip portion 4a of the nozzle 4. At this point, since the deposit removing member 81 is in an open state, there is no contact between the deposit 9 adhering to the outer peripheral surface of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 and the deposit removing member 81, and the convex portions 81a are mutually connected. The vertical position of the deposit 9 is located on the root side of the tip portion 4a, and the adhesion position of the deposit 9 is located on the lower side thereof.

Next, the Y-axis direction drive unit (not shown) provided in the removal member moving device 84 causes the facing deposit removing member 81 to operate in the closing direction indicated by the arrow C in FIG. 4A. As shown in FIGS. 3 (b) and 4 (b), the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 is sandwiched between the convex portions 81a of the pair of facing deposit removing members 81. By the operation of sandwiching the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4, the convex portions 81a of the deposit removing member 81 made of an elastic material sandwich the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 with each other, and the outer peripheral surface of the tip portion 4a. It is elastically deformed to follow the shape, and as shown in FIG. 4B, the tip portion 4a is sandwiched so as to surround the half circumference of the tip portion 4a and cover the upper part of the deposit 9 of the coating nozzle 4. .. At this time, the deposit 9 and the receding surface 81b of the deposit removing member 81 come into contact with each other. Since the left and right convex portions 81a are in close contact with each other, the deposit 9 does not move upward.

By suppressing the thickness of the convex portion 81a and making the structure easily deformable in this way, it is possible to sandwich the entire circumference of the coating nozzle 4 with the convex portion 81a of the deposit removing member 81 so as to be in close contact with the convex portion 81a. Further, when the position of the coating nozzle 4 deviates from the center of the adhering matter removing member 81 facing the coating nozzle 4, the pinching force is not evenly applied to the coating nozzle 4, and a state like one-sided contact may occur and a gap may be generated. However, the removing member moving device 84 is free swinging within a certain range without restricting the position in the advancing / retreating direction or the opening / closing direction in a state where the gap between the adhering deposit removing members 81 facing each other is closed. Since it has a possible support structure, it is possible to apply a force evenly to the left and right sides of the coating nozzle 4, so that a gap due to one-sided contact does not occur. Therefore, it is possible to stably realize a state in which the convex portion 81a of the deposit removing member 81 is evenly adhered to the coating nozzle 4.

Next, as shown by the arrow D in FIG. 4B, the convex portion 81a of the deposit removing member 81 sandwiches the entire outer peripheral surface of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 so as to be in close contact with each other. The coating is applied by lowering the deposit removing member 81 by the Z-axis direction drive unit (not shown) of the removing member moving device 84 having the vertical sliding mechanism base 83b attached via the vertical sliding arm 83a. The adhesive 9 such as a viscous material adhering to the periphery of the tip portion 4a of the nozzle 4 is removed by wiping or scraping. In this operation, after the operation of closing the deposit removing member 81 in which the deposit 9 and the deposit removing member 81 come into contact with each other as shown in FIG. 4B, the coating nozzle 4 is relatively moved while maintaining the closed state. The cleaning is completed by only one operation of lowering in the pulling direction, and the cleaning for wiping off the adhesive 9 such as the viscous material adhering to the tip 4a of the coating nozzle 4 is completed. Further, since the space portion B is formed by the receding surface 81b, the wiped deposit 9 stays at the receding surface 81b and is prevented from spreading widely along the facing surface. After that, the facing deposit removing members 81 are moved in the backward direction by a Y-axis direction drive unit (not shown) to open the facing surfaces.

As described above, since the deposit 9 such as foreign matter can be reliably removed by one operation after the deposit 9 and the deposit removing member 81 come into contact with each other, the reciprocating motion is not required and the deposit 9 is removed once. It is also possible to prevent the viscous material from reattaching to the coating nozzle 4. Further, with respect to the coating nozzle 4, after the operation of closing the deposit removing member 81, a simple operation of only one lowering operation is performed, and the deposit 9 such as a viscous material adhered to the periphery of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4. Since the cleaning can be performed reliably, the time required for cleaning is shortened.
When removing the deposit 9 adhering to the coating nozzle 4, the removal member moving device 84 lowers the deposit removing member 81, but instead of this, the coating nozzle 4 is moved by the nozzle moving means 7. It does not matter if it is pulled up by. In that case, the configuration of the removing member moving device 84 can be simplified.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, the deposit 9 such as the viscous material adhering to the outer surface of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 can be easily and surely removed, and the configuration can be simplified. Can be done. Further, since the cleaning step basically consists of only two operations, that is, the operation of pinching the nozzle tip and the operation of pulling out the nozzle tip with the nozzle tip sandwiched, the time required for cleaning can be shortened. Further, since the wiping of the deposit 9 is completed in one direction and one operation, it is possible to avoid re-adhesion of the once removed deposit to the nozzle tip, and the required time can be shortened, so that the efficiency as a viscous material coating device is achieved. Can be enhanced.

Embodiment 2.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the operation of a main part of the viscous material coating device according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the first embodiment, the deposit 9 around the tip portion of the coating nozzle 4 is removed by operating in the direction of pulling out the coating nozzle 4 with the tip portion sandwiched between the deposit removing members 81. The wiped deposit remains from the lower part of the convex portion 81a of the deposit removing member 81 to the upper part of the retracting surface 81b. In the continuous operation during the automatic operation, when the cleaning operation is performed at the same portion of the convex portion 81a, the previously removed deposits adhering to the deposit removing member 81 reappear around the tip portion of the coating nozzle 4. There is a risk of adhesion, the viscous material wiped off on the deposit removing member 81 accumulates and the residual amount increases, or the convex portion 81a cannot be deformed normally due to hardening, and the entire circumference of the tip portion of the coating nozzle 4 There is a possibility that normal cleaning cannot be obtained, such as being unable to adhere to the surface.

The second embodiment is designed to eliminate the occurrence of such a defect, and since the overall configuration of the coating apparatus itself is substantially the same as that of FIGS. 1 to 4, the description thereof is omitted, and the following is a changed part. The dimensions of the deposit removing member 81 in the depth direction (X-axis direction in FIG. 2) and the control operation of the control device (not shown) will be described as necessary with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. Note that FIG. 5 is a perspective view in which the facing surfaces of the pair of adhering material removing members 81 facing each other are closed, and the cleaning execution positions are conceptually shown a plurality of times. In FIG. 5, the deposit removing member 81 is formed in a deep structure having a large dimension in the X-axis direction, and the control operation by the control device (not shown) is performed by the nozzle moving means 7 shown in FIG. The lowering position of the coating nozzle 4 is sequentially shifted in the X-axis direction such that the contact position E is E1 → E2 → E3 each time the cleaning operation is performed. That is, the structure is such that the deposit removing member 81 is provided with a plurality of contact positions E with the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 at the time of cleaning. The operation of sequentially shifting the contact position E can also be performed by adding an X-axis direction moving mechanism to the removing member moving device 84 of the cleaning device 8.

As described above, in the second embodiment, the pair of adhering material removing members 81 facing each other have a structure having a depth in the X-axis direction orthogonal to the facing surface, and the coating nozzle 4 is formed by the pair of adhering material removing members 81. By sequentially shifting the contact position E of the coating nozzle 4 with respect to the deposit removing member 81 in the X-axis direction, the deposit removing member 81 is relocated to the coating nozzle 4 during the cleaning operation. Contamination can be eliminated, and cleaning can be performed automatically and reliably in clean areas where the viscous material that has been removed during the previous cleaning operation has not adhered, and stable automatic cleaning operation can be performed multiple times. It will be possible. Therefore, since no manpower is required during that time, it is possible to obtain an effect that continuous unmanned operation can be extended for a long time.

Embodiment 3.
If a viscous material or the like adheres to the outer peripheral surface of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4, the minute viscous material precisely discharged by the dispenser remains around the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4, resulting in an insufficient coating amount. , The material remaining in the coating nozzle 4 at the time of the previous coating is combined and coated on the object to be coated 1, and the coating amount increases, so that the coating amount varies, or the viscous material discharged from the tip portion 4a becomes There is a problem that the coating position shifts because it cannot be discharged straight in the form of being pulled by the foreign matter adhering to the outer surface of the tip portion 4a. Therefore, in order to realize stable fine coating, it is necessary to always keep the periphery of the tip portion of the coating nozzle 4 in a clean state in which foreign matter such as a viscous material does not adhere.

In order to solve the above-mentioned incidental problems, the third embodiment makes it possible to remove the deposits more reliably in a short time even if the deposits on the side surface of the nozzle are generated at an unexpected timing. Therefore, in the device configuration of the first embodiment, the surveillance camera 5 shown in FIG. 1 is used so that the occurrence of the deposit 9 on the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 can be constantly detected. Others are the same as those of the first and second embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, and thus the description of the apparent device configuration will be omitted. The surveillance camera 5 shown in FIG. 1 is a nozzle moving means for moving integrally with the coating nozzle 4 or together with the coating nozzle 4 so that the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 can be constantly imaged. It is installed for 7.

In the third embodiment, the control device (not shown) has a function of recognizing the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 by image processing from the image pickup information by the surveillance camera 5, and the presence of the deposit 9 on the tip portion 4a (attached). (Detection of the presence or absence of the kimono 9) and the size or amount of the deposit 9 can be detected by comparing with the imaged data in which the tip portion 4a captured in the past and recorded in the storage unit is in a clean state, and its information. It has a function of making a determination based on the above and operating the cleaning device 8 according to the determination result.

Next, the operation of the third embodiment will be described. During the coating process, the control device (not shown) constantly monitors the tip of the coating nozzle 4 with the monitoring camera 5 to monitor the coating state, and every time the coating operation to the coating object 1 is completed. In addition, the tip portion of the coating nozzle 4 is imaged. For the purpose of detecting the adhesion of foreign matter that suddenly adheres in the normal coating operation, the amount of adhesion 9 such as viscous material that affects the coating quality and the position where it adheres are detected from the captured image and automatically determined. Performs two-dimensional image processing.

In order to realize this function, it is impossible to take an image with a fixed camera because the coating execution position on the coating object 1 changes every time. In the third embodiment, the X-axis drive mechanism 7X having a gantry structure, the Y-axis drive mechanism 7Y installed on the gantry, and the Z-axis drive mechanism 7Z installed on the Y-axis drive mechanism 7Y move arbitrarily. The positional relationship between the coating nozzle 4 and the surveillance camera 5 does not change so that the same imaging state is obtained even at the position of. By installing the surveillance camera 5 on the Z-axis drive mechanism 7Z, regardless of the coating completion position, It enables stable imaging of the tip portion of the coating nozzle 4.

When an deposit 9 such as a viscous material is detected at the tip of the coating nozzle 4 from the image processing result of the imaging information by the surveillance camera 5, the cleaning operation is usually performed at the timing when the coating operation of the set number of times is completed. However, in the third embodiment, even if the cleaning interval has not reached the set number of times, the cleaning instruction of the coating nozzle 4 can be promptly given. More specifically, for example, the level of the deposit 9 when the cleaning operation is performed is obtained in advance by an experiment or the like and set as a threshold value at the time of determination, so that the outer surface of the tip portion 4a of the deposit 9 such as a viscous material 9 is set. It is configured so that the cleaning operation can be performed promptly when necessary, such as when the amount of accumulation in the container suddenly increases.

The longer the residual time of the viscous material adhering to the coating nozzle 4, the more the sticking tends to proceed and the cleaning tends to be difficult. However, if the amount of the adhering material 9 is a small amount that does not reach the above-mentioned threshold, for example. After the first or cleaning, the timer is operated when the first small amount of deposits 9 is detected, and if the threshold is not reached until the predetermined time elapses, the cleaning operation is performed at the timing when the set time elapses. By making it possible, it is possible to eliminate the problem of solidification of the attached viscous material.

As described above, in the third embodiment, the vicinity of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 is constantly monitored by the monitoring camera 5 during the coating process, and the outer surface of the tip portion 4a of the coating nozzle 4 is constantly monitored by two-dimensional image processing. The presence or absence of the deposit 9 on the surface and the amount (size) thereof are observed. In the cleaning operation, the amount of deposits 9 obtained in advance by experiments or the like is set as a threshold value at the time of determination, so that the amount of deposits 9 accumulated on the outer surface of the tip portion 4a suddenly increases, as well as It is possible to promptly and surely perform the cleaning process when necessary, and it is possible to obtain the effect that the surface of the tip surface of the coating nozzle can be always maintained in a clean state.

As shown in the flowchart of FIG. 6, judgments are made in the following order, but the coating operation is performed only when all the judgments have no problem. First, the elapse of time that makes it difficult to remove due to sticking is determined, and if the set time has elapsed, cleaning is performed. If the set time has not elapsed, the application request is confirmed, and if there is no request, the process returns to the top of the flowchart. If there is a coating request, check if the number of coatings after the final cleaning has reached the set number. If it reaches, clean it. Even if it does not reach the level, if it is determined from the nozzle tip image after the immediately preceding coating that there is deposit, cleaning is performed and the coating operation is performed only when it is determined that there is no deposit.

In the present invention, a part or all of each embodiment can be freely combined within the scope of the invention, and each embodiment can be appropriately modified or omitted.

1 Application object, 2 Fixed table, 3 Syringe, 4 Application nozzle, 4a tip, 5 Surveillance camera, 6 Position recognition camera, 7 Nozzle moving means, 7XX axis drive mechanism, 7YY axis drive mechanism, 7ZZ axis Drive mechanism, 8 cleaning device, 81 deposit removing member, 81a convex part, 81b retracting surface, 82 gripping mechanism, 82a fixing screw, 83a vertical sliding arm, 83b vertical sliding mechanism base, 84 removing member moving device, with 9. Kimono, A center line, B empty space, E (E1, E2, E3) contact position.

Claims (5)

A coating nozzle provided so as to apply a viscous material to a predetermined position of an object to be coated, a nozzle moving means capable of moving the coating nozzle to an arbitrary position, and attachment of the coating nozzle to the outer surface of the tip portion. In a viscous material coating device equipped with a cleaning device for removing kimono
The cleaning devices are arranged so as to be able to advance and retreat from each other so as to sandwich the tip of the coating nozzle from both sides thereof.
When the tip of the coating nozzle is sandwiched, each of the sandwiched portions is deformed so as to imitate the outer peripheral surface of the tip, and a pair of deposit removing members having elasticity capable of surrounding the half circumference of the tip. When,
A removal member moving device capable of moving the pair of deposit removing members forward and backward with respect to the coating nozzle at least in the opposite direction is provided.
Adhesion is removed by moving the coating nozzle relative to the pair of the deposit removing members sandwiching the tip of the coating nozzle in the pulling direction, and the surfaces facing each other of the deposit removing members. The side view cross-sectional shape from the direction orthogonal to is formed a convex portion whose end portion on the side facing the root portion side of the coating nozzle is projected in the mating direction, and is connected to the convex portion of the coating nozzle. The side facing the tip forms a receding surface inclined in the receding direction, and when the tip portion of the coating nozzle is sandwiched, the convex portion surrounds a half circumference of the tip portion. A viscous material coating device. The viscous material coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the side view cross-sectional shape of the deposit removing member is symmetrical with respect to the center line in the direction in which the coating nozzle is pulled out. The viscous material coating device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the deposit removing member is made of a rubber material. When the coating nozzle is sandwiched between the pair of the deposit removing members, the contact position between the deposit removing member and the coating nozzle is sequentially shifted in a direction orthogonal to the advancing / retreating direction of the deposit removing member. The viscous material coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the viscous material is applied. A surveillance camera provided in the nozzle moving means so as to move integrally with the coating nozzle or together with the coating nozzle so that the tip of the coating nozzle can be imaged, and imaging data of the surveillance camera. Adheres to the tip of the coating nozzle from the image information when the tip of the coating nozzle is in a clean state and the image information of the tip of the coating nozzle after coating the viscous material. Any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the control unit that detects the adhesion of the viscous material and functions to operate the cleaning device based on the detection result is provided. The viscous material coating device according to.

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